The Plague
by Velociraptor256
Summary: There is an evil almost as terrible as the Templars plaguing Italy, and Ezio has been given licence to take care of it.


_Disclaimer: I do not own Assassins Creed or any of the characters depicted therein._

**The Plague**

"It is good to see you, _nipote_," said Mario Auditore as he warmly embraced his nephew inside his study.

"Likewise, uncle," Ezio replied. "So why did you bring me back here? Do you have more information on the Templars' activities?"

"I'm afraid not," said Mario regretfully. "There is rather different work I need to discuss with you."

Ezio's curiosity was piqued. "What do you mean?"

"There is another group, besides the Templars, that permeates the cities of this area," Mario spoke solemnly. "This group does not have the same fiendish aims or powers of the Templars, but they are no less evil in their own way. They make the people afraid to walk the streets; they extort money from their victims, and those who refuse to pay are forced to endure terrible torture." He gave a small smile. "Eliminating them is not quite the work that our order is used to, but we have been receiving desperate pleas from those in authority - Lorenzo de Medici, Caterina Sforza, the Doge - to apply our skills to this problem. These pleas have become impossible to ignore."

"Then I must head out and kill these people?" Ezio asked.

"Exactly," said Mario. "As many as you possibly can, Ezio. Perhaps we cannot destroy them forever, but we can weaken the grip they have on our cities."

"Who are these people, anyway?"

Mario laughed. "Surely you must have met them yourself during your travels, _nipote_!"

And when he explained, Ezio understood perfectly.

* * *

The next day, on another beautiful summer morning, Ezio was striding towards the square outside the Duomo, filled with resolve.

His uncle was right. He had indeed met representatives of this sinister group many times before, and knew this to be a favoured hunting ground of theirs.

From the moment he had first run into them, leading his mother and sister out of Firenze, he had sensed the darkness in their souls. Many times he had considered killing one or two - indeed, he had longed to do so, almost as much as  
he desired vengeance upon the Templars. He recalled Lorenzo's words about the Pazzi – "I did not think it was possible to desire the death of another so badly" - and mused on how appropriate those words were to this situation.

Before now, he had always restrained himself. It was not the Assassin way to kill simply because you felt like it. But now it was different. Now Ezio had a purpose, and knew he was doing good by this deed - and if it were possible to enjoy taking anybody's life, it would be these.

Ezio steeled himself, and strode into the square.

And almost immediately, three of the dark agents descended upon him, and began to sing.

"Tis a tale of death by blade, vengeance in the night..."

"In times of greatest sorrow, when tyrants rule the land..."

"El diablo, they will say, when the dogs have met their day..."

Ezio didn't hesitate. He drew his hidden blade and drove it into the stomach of the nearest man, silencing his terrible singing instantly. The second man barely had time to look shocked before Ezio punched him in the face with his other hand, sending him reeling, and allowing Ezio to stab him in the back. As he fell, Ezio whipped his lute out of his hands, and smashed it over the head of the third man; in a cloud of splinters, the victim collapsed, and Ezio quickly sprang to pound his face into the ground before dispatching him.

The minstrels. They had to die. All of them.

_Requiescat in pace._

_A/N: I actually wrote this a while ago, when I finished playing Assassins Creed II (I've since finished Brotherhood and am partway through Revelations, so I'm a bit behind franchise-wise). A lot later than I should have, I realised how much more satisfying it is to punch those minstrels instead of throwing money or running away, and since you can't actually assassinate them, I felt an urge to write this._


End file.
